1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a disk changer wherein one of a plurality of disks is selectively loaded in position at a disk playing section, and more particularly to a cartridge in which a plurality of disks are accommodated, a disk discharging device for discharging a disk from a cartridge, a disk clamping device for clamping a disk discharged from a disk discharging device on a turntable, and a cartridge ejecting device for discharging a cartridge from its inserted position.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Recently, a disk player integrated with a disk changer has been put to practical use for a car audio system.
A disk cartridge, such as, for example, a disk cartridge DC shown in FIG. 16, is used with a disk changer-integrated disk player of the type mentioned. Such a disk cartridge DC has a plurality of disks DS accommodated therein. After the disk cartridge DC is loaded in position, the disks DS are searched by a lifting section 200 so that a particular one of the disks DS is drawn out of the disk cartridge DC by means of a pair of drawing-out rollers 201A and 201b. The lifting section 200 includes a disk clamping mechanism including a clamper 202 and a clamp arm 203 pivotable on an axis 203a for supporting the clamper 202 for rotation thereon, and a disk supporting table 207.
A disk drive unit is located below the lifting section 200. The disk drive unit includes a turntable 204 connected to be driven by a motor (not shown) to rotate a disk DS placed on the turntable 204, and an optical pickup 205 mounted in an opposing relationship to a disk DS placed on the turntable 204 for reproducing information from the disk DS.
After the disk DS is drawn out from a disk cartridge DC by the drawing-out rollers 201a and 201b, the lifting section 200 carrying the disk DS thereon is moved down to place the disk DS onto the turntable 204, and then the disk DS is clamped on the turntable 204 by the clamper 202. After then, the disk DS is driven to rotate on the turntable 204, and information is reproduced by the disk DS by the optical pickup 205.
Further, in a disk changer of the type described above, a cartridge DC must necessarily be discharged from a cartridge loading section of the disk changer before a new disk cartridge DC is loaded in place of the former cartridge DC. To this end, a disk ejecting device is provided. A conventional disk ejecting device is constituted such that a lever is provided for urging a disk cartridge in a discharging direction and, if a disk cartridge is inserted to a predetermined operative position against the urging force of a spring or the like acting on the lever, the cartridge itself or the lever is locked in position. Then, when the cartridge DC is to be discharged for replacement thereof, such locked condition is cancelled by operation of a solenoid for the ejecting operation. Consequently, the lever is pushed out toward a disk insertion opening by the urging force of the spring to discharge the disk cartridge DC.
A disk cartridge to be loaded into a disk changer-integrated disk player of the type described above may have various structures. An exemplary structure includes a plurality of pivotal trays located in a disk cartridge, each tray having a disk carried thereon. After a disk cartridge of the type is loaded in position into a disk changer, one of the trays on which a disk to be reproduced is carried is pivoted and projected outwardly from the cartridge. Then, a disk drive unit including a turntable and an optical pickup is moved to the position of the thus projected tray to play the disk.
With the disk cartridge of the structure described just above, the locus of a tray when it is pivoted outwardly from the disk cartridge is projected to the outside of the cartridge. Accordingly, an excessively large amount of space is required. Further, since a disk drive unit including a turntable and an optical pickup must be lifted to the position of a tray, a lifting section within the apparatus is heavy, and accordingly, a lifting driving mechanism must have correspondingly great lifting force.
To the contrary, the disk cartridge DC of the structure shown in FIG. 16 wherein a disk DS is drawn out horizontally from within the disk cartridge DC requires no provision of space for pivotal motion of a tray, which is advantageous in conserving space. Further, since the disk drive unit including the turntable 204 and the optical pickup 205 may be located just below the lifting section 200, there are the advantages that the playing operation of the disk drive unit can be easily stabilized and that the weight of the lifting section can be reduced.
With the disk cartridge DC having a structure wherein a disk DS is drawn out in a horizontal orientation therefrom, however, a spring mechanism for retaining a disk DS within the cartridge DC, an ejector for pushing out a disk DS toward the drawing-out rollers 201a and 201b, a partition plate for partitioning a drive accommodating section and so on must be provided in a fixed relationship to each other. Accordingly, mounting structures for such various members within the disk cartridge are complicated, and an increase in the thickness and overall size of the cartridge results.
Meanwhile, with a disk player of the type described above, a disk DS is nipped by the drawing-in rollers 201a and 201b being rotated and is introduced into the lifting section 200. In this instance, if the disk DS should shake or sway, then an end thereof might possibly abut the clamper 202 or some other member to prevent the disk DS from being loaded in position. Thus, another guide roller (not shown) is conventionally provided at a location interior to the drawing-in roller 201a so as to guide a disk DS so that an end thereof may not be lifted in order to prevent the disk DS from abutting the clamper 202 or some other member.
However, with the disk changer-integrated disk player shown in FIG. 16, after a disk DS is introduced into the lifting section 200, the lifting section 200 is moved down to the disk playing section at which the turntable 204 and so on are located so that the disk DS is placed onto the turntable 204. Before the lifting section 200 is lowered, however, the drawing-out roller 201a must necessarily be moved to a position at which it will not abut the disk DS. In addition, it is also necessary to move the guide roller 201b away together with the drawing-out roller 201a, and a mechanism for moving the rollers 201a and 201b away at the same time must be provided. Consequently, the mechanism in the lifting section 200 is made more complex.
Besides, since the guide roller 201b extends over the entire length in the lifting section 200 in the direction perpendicular to the plane of FIG. 16, the space in the lifting section 200 is restricted due to the provision of the guide roller 201b, which makes arrangement of other parts difficult.